Dwight Longenecker's Blog, page 115

Death, Judgment, Heaven and Hell?….So What.

Deacon is busy publishing parish letters on the Four Last Things for the Sundays of Advent. Death, Judgement, Heaven and Hell. But it seems to me that the response of most people in our society and our church is a careless shrug of “So what.” Not long ago I was looking at a picture of [Read More...]

Two Arms of the Church: East and West

This week’s article at Aleteia comments on the Pope’s recent visit to Turkey and quotes Patheos blogger Billy Kangas on what the East can learn from the West and vice versa. Both Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew would agree that the Christian faith is more than simply helping the poor and working to end war [Read More...]

Atheists Promote Belief in Santa?

Last year there was some wisecracking atheist Christmas billboard which also featured Santa. This year’s edition is now out. It is pictured here, and features a kid writing to Santa saying that he doesn’t want to go to church because he’s too old for fairy tales. This is a hoot. The kid’s too old for [Read More...]

The Root of Restlessness: An Advent Hope

What is it that makes us so restless and so unhappy? Some say it is desire. The root of all unhappiness is desire. We desire what we do not have, and we desire more what we cannot have. But what is at the root of that desire? I think it is something else. It is [Read More...]

Saints and Angels: Out of Sight Out of Mind

Yesterday I commented that when the statues of the saints were removed from the churches in the Protestant Revolution of our time (i.e. post Vatican II wreck-ovation) the communion of saints also vanished. The more I think about this, the more true it becomes. Where, in your experience, have you come across a Catholic church [Read More...]

Stripping the Altars is Ripping the Heart Out of Catholicism

This before and after photograph of the St Turibius chapel of the Pontifical Josephinum seminary illustrates what was done to Catholic architecture across the world in the wake of the Vatican 2 revolution. A vital break in the sacred tradition took place which is rightly called a new stripping of the altars. As I travel [Read More...]

A Married Priest on Married Priests – 3

In my earlier posts here and here I discussed the practical aspects of having married priests. There is a basic flaw, however in only discussing this issue with a regard to the practicalities. This is because there are simply too many variables to make a strong case one way or the other for or against [Read More...]

On Being a Missionary

In the Evangelical Fundamentalist world in which I was raised our heroes were the missionaries. These courageous men and women gave up everything to go live in the jungle or some other God forsaken, rat infested place to preach the gospel. They went to the desert of North Africa, the jungles of Burma and countered [Read More...]

Historicism and Heresy

My article for Imaginative Conservative website this week is an examination of historicism–the idea that there is no over arching meaning to history, but that all is random.  I remember being delighted by the Sunday School teacher’s play on words when she retold the Old Testament sagas and explained that history was “His Story”. I was [Read More...]

Pope Francis Lectures the Europeans

Today’s article for Aleteia sees Pope Francis’ recent speeches to the European Parliament and Council of Europe in the light of his interest in end times. Most of all, Pope Francis engaged the Europeans with the underlying spiritual malaise of the developed world. Noting the cynical and weary attitude of Europeans, said there is a “great [Read More...]